Plant Genetic Research
Scientific Journal

Identification, Sequencing and Stability Evaluation of Eight Reference Genes in Saffron (Crocus sativus L.)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Seyed Sajad Sohrabi 1
Seyyed Mohsen Sohrabi 1
Seyed Karim Mousavi 2
Mohsen Mohammadi 3

1 Department of Plant Production and Genetic Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran

2 Plant Protection Research Division, Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, Agricultural Research Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Khorramabad, Iran

3 Department of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology and Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

‎20.1001.1.23831367.1399.7.1.8.5
Abstract
Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is the most valuable and expensive spice in the world. The stigmas of
saffron are the source of valuable apocarotenoids such as crocin, picrocrocin, and safranal.
Transcriptomic and expression studies of genes are important steps in investigating of secondary
metabolites in plants. One of the important prerequisites for such studies is identification of reliable
and stable reference genes to normalize the expression of other genes. In the present study, eight
reference genes were identified and isolated using transcriptome of saffron and their expression
stability was evaluated by non-parametric statistic methods. The results of amplification and
sequencing showed accurate identification of eight reference genes Actin, EF1, GAPDH, H3, MDH,
TBP, UBC, and UBQ. The expression stability evaluation revealed that MDH and UBQ genes had the
highest stability among different saffron tissues and TBP had the lowest stability among them. In this
study, eight reference genes were isolated and their expression stability was evaluated from different
tissue types of saffron, for the first time. The reference genes identified in the present study can be
used as stable genes to normalize gene expression in transcriptomic and expression studies of saffron
plant.

Keywords

Non-parametric statistics
Gene expression stability
Transcriptome
Saffron
Reference genes

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